Sebastian Vettel has said that he was never really close to signing with Red Bull in 2020.
When Aston Martin had signed the German, there were reports that Vettel was in talks with Red Bull as well. However, Vettel dismissed those speculations in the drivers’ press conference ahead of the Italian GP in Monza this weekend.
He said that his deal with Aston Martin was already signed even before it became clear Alex Albon was going to be replaced by the team. Vettel elaborated:
“Well, I think it was 2020. But yeah, I mean, obviously, you know, I made the decision to join Aston Martin before I think it was really in discussion that Alex is going to leave. So it was never really close. But of course, I know Christian, I know Helmut.”
He admitted having a ‘brief chat’ with Red Bull, but there wasn’t anything ‘serious’, and there was no talk about Vettel driving for the team.
“So for sure, I had a, you know, sort of brief chat with them, but never really anything serious,” said Vettel. “And I also know and knew that if it was, would have been an option or series, we would have at least talked about it. But it never came to that point.”
Vettel said that he has no regrets on joining Alpine despite hoping for a bigger jump in performance, which that did not materialize. Hey said:
“So obviously, a couple of months later, you could look back and say if, and what if, and so on. But I’m happy with the choice I made. And obviously, you know, expected that we will be more competitive last year and this year, but we were not.”
The German continued:
“I’m very happy with the way the team has progressed and (how) we are working together. So, obviously, it’s not the dream sort of coming true, racing in the positions we are racing, but you know, it’s been a challenge, and I think I’ve accepted it and tried to make the most of it.”
Vettel (20) is down in 12th place in the drivers standings – with his best haul of eight coming at Azerbaijan – where he finished sixth.
Sebastian Vettel not mulling non-driving role at Red Bull for now
Sebastian Vettel was asked whether he could return to Red Bull in a non-driving capacity in the future. The German did not dismiss that entirely but maintained that he isn’t looking for anything right now. Hey said:
“I don’t know at the moment, I’m not considering anything, because you know, I’m stepping away. So, time will tell what will be something that is possible to do, if there is an offer of any Such nature or not, and then I will I will see how I feel like, you know, at the moment.”
For now, he would like to focus on other things – like spending time with his kids.
“I’m quite happy to spend more time on other things and look forward to seeing the kids more and stuff like that,” said the German. “And then time will tell whether I get bored within three months or three years. I don’t know. So we will see.”
Sebastian Vettel has always been a bit of an anomaly in the paddock. So it will be very interesting to see what he does after his F1 career comes to the end of this season.
What’s your favorite race of the 2022 season so far? Tell us in the comments below..
Coming soon!
Coming soon!
